In the movies “The Wizard of Oz” and “The Inspector General”, there is a specific gesture that is used, wherein a person places an index finger on the side of one’s noes and says “smart”. Does anyone know the origin and the meaning of this gesture? I’ve been curious about this for several years, and have not been able to find any information on it.
Thanks!
If you could put that more into context it would help a little bit.
I believe, though the description’s quite vague, that the gesture refers to the saying ‘right on the nose.’
Say I’m thinking of a number between 1 and 10.
You say 8. If I was thinking 8, it would ‘right on the nose,’ or absolutely correct.
It’s not the same as the gesture in charades, where a person touches the tip of their nose and points to a specific person. This is “laying a finger aside of the nose”, like Santa in 'Twas The Night Before Christmas . I’m interested in how it evolved from meaning “right on the nose”, to this gesture specifically combined with the word “smart”. I’ve only ever seen this combination in movies from the late 1930’s and 1940’s.